Integration of image/video pattern recognition in traffic engineering

ABSTRACT

Visual information from camera sensors can be used to assign scheduling and/or transmission parameters in a wireless network. For example, the visual information can be used to visually discover a user equipment (UE) prior to initiating link discovery. This may be accomplished by analyzing the visual information to identify an absolute or relative position of the UE. The positioned may then be used to select antenna configuration parameters for transmitting a discovery signal, e.g., direction of departure (DoD), angle of departure (AoD), precoder. As another example, the visual information is used to predict a link obstruction over a radio interface between a UE and an AP. In yet other examples, the visual information may be used for traffic engineering purposes, such as to predict a traffic density or pair UEs with APs.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to telecommunications, and inparticular embodiments, to techniques and mechanisms for the integrationof image/video pattern recognition in traffic engineering.

BACKGROUND

Next-generation wireless networks may need to provide quick linkdiscovery and improved link-adaptation to satisfy increasing quality ofexperience (QoE) expectations of mobile users. Moreover, next-generationwireless networks may implement wireless physical layer characteristicsthat cause the access link to be more sensitive to interference causedby link obstructions and/or environmental conditions, and that increasethe complexity of link discovery. For example, next-generation wirelessnetworks may include high-frequency access points (APs) that communicatemillimeter wave (mmW) radio signals. Such high-frequency signals mayrequire high degrees of spatial selectivity to achieve suitable signalrange, which may render them more susceptible to link obstructions.Moreover, the reliance on highly directional beamforming complicatesinitial cell search since the user equipment (UE) and the high-frequencyaccess point must jointly search over a potentially large angulardirectional space to locate suitable antenna configuration parametersfor establishing the high-frequency interface. Accordingly, techniquesfor achieving fast link discovery and improved link-adaptation aredesired for next-generation wireless networks.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Technical advantages are generally achieved, by embodiments of thisdisclosure which describe location-based beam alignment speed upstrategies for directional wireless networks.

In accordance with an embodiment, a method for camera aided wirelessnetwork management is provided. In this example, the method includesreceiving visual information from one or more camera sensors monitoringcoverage areas of a wireless network, and assigning a scheduling ortransmission parameter for a transmission between a transmit point and areceive point in accordance with the visual information provided by theone or more camera sensors. An apparatus for performing this method isalso provided.

In accordance with another embodiment, another method for camera aidedwireless network management is provided. In this example, the methodincludes receiving visual information from one or more camera sensorsmonitoring coverage areas of a wireless network, and predicting trafficdensity or pairing user equipments (UEs) with access points (APs) usingthe visual information provided by the one or more camera sensors.

In accordance with yet another embodiment, a method for camera aidedmanagement of backhaul links is provided. In this example, the methodincludes receiving visual information from one or more camera sensorsmonitoring a microwave backhaul link between a first network-sidecomponent and a second network-side component, identifying a movement ofthe second network component using the visual information, and modifyinga transmission angle of a signal communicated over the microwavebackhaul link to compensate for the movement of the second networkcomponent.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present disclosure, and theadvantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptionstaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a diagram of an embodiment wireless communicationsnetwork;

FIG. 2 illustrates a diagram of an embodiment wireless network in whichvisual information is used to assign scheduling or transmissionparameters;

FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment method for using visualinformation to assign transmission or scheduling parameters in awireless network;

FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment method for using visualinformation to achieve link discovery in a wireless network;

FIGS. 5A-5B illustrate diagrams of embodiment wireless networks in whichvisual information is used to predict link obstructions;

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment method for using visualinformation to predict a link obstruction in a wireless network;

FIG. 7 illustrates a diagram of an embodiment network architecture inwhich visual information is used to make traffic engineering decisions;

FIG. 8 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment method for predictingtraffic density using visual information provided by camera sensorsmonitoring a wireless network;

FIG. 9 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment method for using visualinformation to pair UEs to APs in a wireless network;

FIG. 10 illustrates a diagram of an embodiment wireless network in whichvisual information is used to assign transmission parameters over amicrowave backhaul interface;

FIG. 11 illustrates a block diagram of an embodiment processing system;and

FIG. 12 illustrates a block diagram of an embodiment transceiver.

Corresponding numerals and symbols in the different figures generallyrefer to corresponding parts unless otherwise indicated. The figures aredrawn to clearly illustrate the relevant aspects of the embodiments andare not necessarily drawn to scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

The making and using of embodiments of this disclosure are discussed indetail below. It should be appreciated, however, that the conceptsdisclosed herein can be embodied in a wide variety of specific contexts,and that the specific embodiments discussed herein are merelyillustrative and do not serve to limit the scope of the claims. Further,it should be understood that various changes, substitutions andalterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit andscope of this disclosure as defined by the appended claims.

Aspects of this disclosure use visual information from camera sensors toassign scheduling and/or transmission parameters in a wireless network.In some embodiments, the visual information is used to visually discovera user equipment (UE) prior to initiating link discovery. For example,the visual information may be analyzed to identify an absolute orrelative position of the UE in a coverage area of an access point (AP),which can be used to select antenna configuration parameters fortransmitting a discovery signal, e.g., direction of departure (DoD),angle of departure (AoD), precoder. In other embodiments, the visualinformation is used to predict a link obstruction over a radio interfacebetween a UE and an AP. In one example, the visual information is usedto track a position of the UE migrating in or near a coverage area ofthe AP. The visual information may then be used to predict that theserved UE will migrate to a position such that an object (e.g., abuilding) will interrupt the signal path between the UE and the AP. Inanother example, the visual information is used to identify a weathercondition (e.g., precipitation), and to predict that the weathercondition will increase a path loss over the radio interface. Predictingthe link obstruction may allow a transmission or scheduling parameter tobe modified ahead of time to mitigate or avoid a reduction in linkquality resulting from the link obstruction. For example, the transmitpower level of a wireless transmission communicated between the AP andthe UE may be increased to compensate for increased path loss resultingfrom the link obstruction. As another example, a modulation and codingscheme (MCS) level of a wireless transmission communicated between theserving AP and the served UE may be lowered to compensate for increasedpath loss resulting from the link obstruction. The lowered MCS level mayallow the receiver (the UE or the AP) to accurately decode thetransmission despite a reduction in received signal power resulting fromthe link obstruction. As yet another example, a new precoder may beassigned to the UE and/or AP to alter a signal path of a radio interfacebetween the UE and the AP in order to partially or completely avoid thelink obstruction. As yet another example, the UE may be handed off to aneighboring AP to partially or completely avoid the link obstruction. Asyet another embodiment, a neighboring AP and the AP may be scheduled tojointly transmit data to, or jointly received data from, the UE. Inother embodiments, the connections might be between two APs, or betweenan AP and another element of the network infrastructure as would be usedin wireless backhaul connections on the case of relays. Those skilled inthe art will appreciate that reference to a UE should also beinterpreted as covering other terminal devices such as machine tomachine devices that may not have a human user.

Aspects of this disclosure also use visual information for trafficengineering purposes. Specifically, camera sensors may monitor coverageareas of a wireless network, and provide visual information to acontroller. The controller may then use the visual information topredict a traffic density or pair UEs with APs. These and other aspectsare discussed in greater detail below.

While much of this disclosure describes inventive aspects in the contextof transmission between access points (APs) and user equipments (UEs),it should be appreciated that those inventive concepts are applicable toany wireless transmission between a transmit point and a receive point.For example, visual information could be used to perform link adaptationbetween wireless backhaul links, machine-to-machine (M2M) links, and/ordevice-to-device (D2D) links.

FIG. 1 illustrates a network 100 for communicating data. The network 100comprises an AP 110 having a coverage area 101, a plurality of mobiledevices 120, and a backhaul network 130. As shown, the base station 110establishes uplink and/or downlink connections with the mobile devices120, which serve to carry data from the mobile devices 120 to the AP 110and vice-versa. Data carried over the uplink/downlink connections mayinclude data communicated between the mobile devices 120, as well asdata communicated to/from a remote-end (not shown) by way of thebackhaul network 130. As used herein, the term “access point (AP)”refers to any component (or collection of components) configured toprovide wireless access to a network, for example a base station such asan evolved Node B (eNB) as defined by the 3rd Generation PartnershipProject (3GPP), a macro-cell, a femtocell, a Wi-Fi access point (Wi-FiAP), or other wirelessly enabled devices. Base stations provide wirelessaccess in accordance with one or more wireless communication protocols,e.g., long term evolution (LTE), LTE advanced (LTE-A), High Speed PacketAccess (HSPA), Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac. As used herein, the term “mobiledevice” refers to any component (or collection of components) capable ofestablishing a wireless connection with a base station, such as a userequipment (UE), a mobile station (STA), and other wirelessly enableddevices that may or may not be mobile. In some embodiments, the network100 includes various other wireless devices, such as relays, low powernodes.

Aspects of this disclosure use visual information to assign schedulingor transmission parameters in wireless networks. FIG. 2 illustrates anembodiment wireless network 200 for using visual information to assignscheduling or transmission parameters. As shown, the embodiment wirelessnetwork 200 includes an access point (AP) 210, a controller 250, and acamera sensor 240. The camera sensor 240 may be any component thatmonitors a coverage area 201 of the AP 210, and provides visualinformation to the AP 210 and/or a controller 250. The visualinformation may be provided via a backhaul network 230, or through someother means, e.g., an internal connection. In some embodiments, thecamera sensor 240 is co-located with the AP 210. In other embodiments,the camera sensor 240 is co-located with the controller 250. In yetother embodiments the camera sensor 240 is separate from both the AP 210and the controller 250. While only a single camera sensor 240 isdepicted in FIG. 2, it should be appreciated that multiple camerasensors may be strategically positioned to monitor differentregions/angles of the coverage area 201.

Visual information provided by the camera sensor 240 to the AP 210and/or the controller 250 may be used to assign a scheduling ortransmission parameter in the wireless network 200. In some embodiments,the visual information relates to a specific user equipment (UE), suchas the user equipment (UE) 220. In such embodiments, the UE 220 may bevisually discovered by the camera sensor 240, or by the AP 210 and/orcontroller using the visual information provided by the camera sensor240.

Various techniques may be used to visually discover the UE 220. Forexample, the UE 220 may be discovered by identifying a visual signatureemitted by the UE 220, e.g., a light emitting diode (LED) signature. Insome embodiments, the visual signature is emitted at a frequency that isoutside the visible spectrum observed by humans, such as at a frequencybelow 430 terahertz (THz) or at a frequency above 790 terahertz (THz).The visual signature may be a universal signature emitted by a group ofUEs (e.g., next-generation UEs). For instance, next-generation UEs mayemit a common visual signature when they are seeking to be visuallydiscovered, e.g., seeking to engage in link discovery. Alternatively,the visual signature may be assigned specifically to the UE 220, or to agroup of UEs to which the UE 220 belongs, and may be used to identifyone or more characteristics of the UE 220, e.g., subscriber ID, UEcapabilities.

Various image processing steps may be performed to visually discover theUE 220. While the image processing steps may be performed entirely bythe camera sensor 240, it should be appreciated that the some or all ofthe image processing steps for visually discovering the UE 220 may beperformed by the AP 210 and/or the controller 250. In some embodiments,the camera sensor 240 directly discovers the UE 220 by locallyprocessing a video signal of the coverage area to detect a visualsignature of the UE 220. In such embodiments, the camera sensor 240 mayperform a portion of the video processing prior to providing the visualinformation to the AP 210 and/or controller 250. For example, the visualinformation provided to the AP 210 and/or controller 250 may be aprocessed video feed accompanied by metadata (e.g., the UE 220 isdepicted in a specific frame or time interval of the video feed) or asummary of the processed video feed (e.g., the UE 220 is located at aspecific position in the coverage area 201). In other embodiments, thecamera sensor 240 provides a raw video feed to the AP 210 or thecontroller 250, where the raw video feed is analyzed todiscover/identify the UE 220. The term “raw video feed” refers to videodata (compressed or otherwise) that has not been analyzed by the camerasensor 240 for purposes of visually identifying the UE 220.

Visual information pertaining to the UE 220 may be used for assigning ormodifying a transmission or scheduling parameter. For example, thevisual information may be processed to identify a relative or absoluteposition of the UE 220 in or near the coverage area 201. The relative orabsolute position of the UE 220 may then be used to predict an angles ofdeparture (AoD) or a direction of departure (DoD) for a signal pathbetween the UE. The predicted AoD or DoD can then be used to assign aprecoder to a discovery signal transmission between the UE 220 and theAP 210. As another example, the visual information may be used topredict a device orientation of the UE 220 or a mechanical beamsteeringorientation of the UE 220, which may be used to assign a scheduling ortransmission parameter to the UE 220 or the AP 210. As yet anotherexample, the visual information may be used to track a position of theUE 220 or a moving object, and to predict a link obstruction or ahandover condition.

In some embodiments, the visual information relates to an object orgroup of objects/devices, rather than a specific UE. For example, thevisual information could relate to an object (e.g., a bus, a bird) or aweather condition (e.g., precipitation) that may present a linkobstruction over the wireless interface 212. As another example, thevisual information could be used to predicting traffic density. Forexample, the visual information could indicate that a group of UEs aremigrating toward the coverage area 201, as may occur when a major roadbegins to become congested or patrons are entering/leaving a fairgroundor arena. As another example, the visual information could be used topair UEs with APs.

FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment method 300 for usingvisual information to assign transmission or scheduling parameters in awireless network, as might be performed by a network device, e.g., anaccess point, a controller. At step 310, the network device receivesvisual information from one or more camera sensors monitoring coverageareas of a wireless network. At step 320, the network device assigns ascheduling or transmission parameter for a transmission between atransmit point and a receive point in accordance with the visualinformation provided by the one or more camera sensors. In oneembodiment, the network device uses the visual information to facilitatelink discovery between the AP and the UE. For instance, the networkdevice may predict a direction of departure (DoD) or an angle ofdeparture (AoD) between the AP and the UE in accordance with the visualinformation, and assign a precoder to a discovery signal transmissionbetween the AP and the UE in accordance with the predicted DoD or thepredicted AoD. In another embodiment, the network device uses the visualinformation to predict a link obstruction between the UE and the AP, andthen modifies a scheduling or transmission parameter to mitigate, oravoid, a reduction in link quality resulting from the link obstruction.The network device may use the visual information for other purposes aswell.

Visual information can be used to initiate and/or facilitate linkdiscovery in wireless networks. FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment method400 for using visual information to achieve link discovery, as might beperformed by a network device, e.g., an access point, a controller. Atstep 410, the network device receives visual information from one ormore camera sensors. The visual information indicates that a UE has beenvisually discovered in a coverage area of an AP. At step 420, thenetwork device determines whether the visual information satisfies alink-discovery criterion. The link-discovery criterion may correspond toa characteristic of a potential radio interface between the UE and theAP. For example, the link-discovery criterion may be satisfied when thevisual information indicates an unobstructed line-of-sight between theAP and the UE. As another example, the link-discovery criterion may besatisfied when a predicted link quality between the AP and the UE, asestimated from the visual information, exceeds a threshold. Thepredicted link quality could correspond to a direct signal path (e.g.,line-of-sight) or an indirect signal path the reflects off a reflectionpoint (e.g., a building, a body of water, a street) between the transmitpoint and the receive point.

If the visual information satisfies a link-discovery criterion, themethod 400 proceeds to step 430, where the network devices initiateslink discovery between the AP and the UE. Otherwise, if the visualinformation does not satisfy the link-discovery criterion, then themethod 400 proceeds to step 440, where the network device continues tomonitor the visual information until either a stop condition is reachedat step 450, or the visual information is deemed to satisfy thelink-discovery criterion at step 420. If the stop condition is reachedat step 450, then the method 400 proceeds to step 460, where the networkdevice stops monitoring the visual information.

Visual information may also be used to predict a link obstruction. FIGS.5A-5B illustrate embodiment wireless networks 501, 502 in which visualinformation is used to predict link obstructions. In the wirelessnetwork 501, visual information provided by a camera sensor 540 is usedto track a spatial location of a moving object 590 migrating in acoverage area of an AP 510 between at least a first time period (t1) anda second time period (t2). The visual information is then used topredict that the moving object 590 will cause a link obstruction at athird time period (t3). In the wireless network 502, visual informationprovided by a camera sensor 540 is used to track a spatial location ofthe UE 520 migrating in a coverage area of the AP 510 between at least afirst time period (t1) and a second time period (t2). The visualinformation is then used to predict that an object 595 will cause a linkobstruction at a third time period (t3) prior to the third time period.It should be appreciated that visual information may also be used totrack a moving object and a migrating UE, and to predict linkobstruction when the moving object passes through a signal path of themigrating UE and an AP.

After predicting of the link obstruction, the AP 510 or a controller 550may modify a transmission or scheduling parameter of the UE 520 and/orAP 510 for the third time period (t3) to mitigate or avoid a reductionin link quality resulting from the link obstruction. In someembodiments, the AP 510 or the controller 550 increases a transmit powerlevel and/or reduce a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) level of atransmission communicated by the UE 520 or the AP 510 during the thirdtime period (t3) to compensate for increased path loss resulting fromthe link obstruction. In other embodiments, the AP 510 or the controller550 may modify an antenna transmission scheme of a transmissioncommunicated over the radio interface 519 during the third time period(t3) to avoid, or mitigate effects from, the link obstruction. Forinstance, the AP 510 or the controller 550 may assign a new precoder tothe UE 520 and/or the AP 510 such that a signal path of the radiointerface 519 is altered to avoid, or mitigate effects from, the linkobstruction. In one example, the signal path of the radio interface 519is altered from a direct line-of-sight path to an indirect path (or viceversa) to avoid, or mitigate effects from, the link obstruction. Inanother example, the signal path of the radio interface 519 is alteredfrom one indirect path to another indirect path to avoid, or mitigateeffects from, the link obstruction. In yet another embodiment, the UE520 is handed off to a neighboring AP. In yet another embodiment, datacommunicated to/from the UE 520 is scheduled to be jointlytransmitted/received by the AP 510 and a neighboring AP.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment method 600 for usingvisual information to predict a link obstruction in a wireless network,as might be performed by a network device, e.g., an access point, acontroller. At step 610, the network device receives visual informationfrom one or more camera sensors monitoring coverage areas of a wirelessnetwork. At step 620, the network device predicts a link obstructionover a radio interface based on the visual information. In oneembodiment, the visual information is used to track an absolute orrelative location of a UE migrating throughout one or more coverageareas. In such an embodiment, the network device may use the visualinformation to predict that the UE will migrate to a position such thatan object (e.g., stationary structure, moving object) will pass througha signal path (e.g., line of sight, indirect path) between the UE and aserving AP. In another embodiment, the visual information is used totrack an absolute or relative location of a moving object, and thenetwork device uses the visual information to predict that the movingobject will pass through a signal path between the UE and the AP. In yetanother embodiment, the visual information indicates a weather condition(e.g., precipitation), and the network device uses visual information topredict that the weather condition will increase a path loss over aradio interface extending between the UE and the AP. Other scenarios arealso possible.

At step 630, the network device modifies a scheduling or transmissionparameter to mitigate or avoid effects from the link obstruction. If thelink obstruction is an object that passes through a signal path of theradio interface, then the network device may modify a transmission orscheduling parameter to either compensate for increased path loss causedby the link obstruction or to avoid the link obstruction entirely. Forexample, the network device may increase a transmit power level and/orreduce a modulation coding scheme (MCS) of a transmission communicatedduring the period to compensate for the increased path loss caused bythe link obstruction. As another example, the network device may modifyan antenna transmission scheme of a transmission communicated to/fromthe UE during the period. For instance, the network device may assign anew precoder to the AP and/or the UE to alter a signal path of the radiointerface. As yet another example, the network device may schedule aneighboring AP to transmit/receive a data transmission to/from the UEduring the time period. This may entail initiating a handover of the UEfrom the serving AP to the neighboring AP, or scheduling a jointtransmission or a joint reception between the serving AP and theneighboring AP. If the link obstruction is a weather condition (e.g.,precipitation), then the network device may modify an antennaconfiguration of the AP and/or the UE. For instance, the network devicemay change from a multi-polarization scheme to a single polarizationscheme to reduce the degree of signal attenuation that results fromprecipitation.

Visual information may also be used to make traffic engineeringdecisions. FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment network architecture 700 forusing visual information to make traffic engineering decisions. Asshown, the embodiment network architecture 700 includes a user-plane701, a data plane 702, and a control plane 703. The user plane 701corresponds to user-side devices, such as UEs, computers, and otherdevices capable of accessing the data plane 702. In this example, theuser plane 701 includes a group of wired users and two groups ofwireless users. The data plane 702 corresponds to network-side devicesthat provide, or facilitate, network access to user-side devices. In thecontext of LTE networks, the data plane 702 may include access points(APs) in the radio access network (RAN), in addition to network-devices(e.g., gateways) in the evolved packet core (EPC). The control plane 703corresponds to network-side devices that control the manner in whichuser-side devices access the data plane 702. The control plane 703 mayinclude network controllers (e.g., schedulers), which may include one ormore of a radio node coordinator (RNC), a quality of experience (QoE)manager, a traffic engineering optimizer, and a congestion detectionserver. Control plane information may be stored in a database. In thisexample, the control plane 703 further includes a video-enhancedtraffic/link quality predictor 730, which may receive and process visualinformation provided by camera sensors 710 monitoring the user-plane701. In one embodiment, the video-enhanced traffic/link qualitypredictor 730 predicts a traffic density using the visual informationprovided by the camera sensors 710. In another embodiment, thevideo-enhanced traffic/link quality predictor 730 pairs UEs with APsbased on the visual information provided by the camera sensors 710.

FIG. 8 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment method 800 for usingvisual information to predict traffic density in a wireless network, asmight be performed by a network device, e.g., an AP, a controller, avideo-enhanced traffic/link quality predictor. At step 810, the networkdevice receives visual information from one or more camera sensorsmonitoring coverage areas of a wireless network. At step 820, thenetwork device predicts a traffic density using the visual informationprovided by the camera sensors.

FIG. 9 illustrates a flowchart of an embodiment method 900 for usingvisual information to pair UEs to APs in a wireless network, as might beperformed by a network device, e.g., an AP, a controller, avideo-enhanced traffic/link quality predictor. At step 910, the networkdevice receives visual information from one or more camera sensorsmonitoring coverage areas of a wireless network. At step 920, thenetwork device pairs UEs with APs using the visual information providedby the camera sensors.

In a further embodiment, which will be explained below with reference toFIG. 10, an image processing system provides an input to a controlsystem for a fixed point-to-point link, such as a microwave backhaullink. In areas in which providing a wired backhaul link to an AP is notfeasible, it may be preferable to make use of a high capacity radiolink, such as a microwave link. In such an embodiment, the AP is oneendpoint of a microwave link, with the other endpoint being a microwavetransceiver. If one, or both, of the AP and the microwave transceiverare mounted to a conventional transmission tower, high winds can causethe relative position of the two endpoints to vary. To a ground-basedobserver, this is manifested as a tower subtly swaying. Even securingthe tower with guidelines cannot guarantee a perfectly stable tower.

The two endpoints are typically within line of sight of each other toensure a clear channel. RF beam steering allows transmitters to adjustthe transmission angle of a signal without requiring mechanical steeringsystems. RF beam steering allows for faster signal steering but it istypically restricted to a narrow angular range in comparison to amechanical steering system that re-orients the transmitter to aim abeam.

By capturing a stream of images, each end of the microwave link canprovide an input to its own beam steering control system to allow eachend to assist the beam steering system to properly aim the signal towhere the receiver is/will be instead of sending the signal to where thereceiver was previously. This can be understood with reference to FIG.10. FIG. 10 illustrates a top view of a system 1000 having an AP 1010that is securely mounted to a building 1012. This allows the AP to beeffectively fixed in position under all but the most extreme situations.The AP 1010 receives its backhaul connection through a microwave link toa tower mounted transceiver at position 1014. The transceiver may be anactive antenna adapted for both cellular and microwave transmission andreception, and may provide wireless access to mobile devices in acoverage area of the AP 1110. Other configurations are also possible.Both ends of the microwave connection can be configured to steer theirtransmitted signal. Under windy conditions, the cellular tower may sway,causing the position of the transceiver can be offset to otherpositions. In the example illustrated in FIG. 10, the transceiver isoffset to positions 1016 and 1018. AP 1010 can see the deviation from θ₁to θ₂. Assuming that the camera is oriented along the normaltransmission path, deviation angles can be calculated (based on theobserved offset of the transceiver and the known distance between thetransceiver and the AP). These deviation angles can be provided as aninput to a beam steering control system at the AP.

One skilled in the art will appreciate that even if the AP is fixed,from the perspective of a camera attached to the transceiver, movementto positions 1016 and 1018 will result in the transceiver camera“seeing” movement in the AP 1010. This allows for the determination of adeviation angle that can be provided to the beam steering control systemin the transceiver.

In a further refinement, it will be noted that the change in positionfrom 1014 to 1016 and 1018 includes more than just an offset that isperpendicular to the line of transmission when the transceiver is atposition 1014. Image processing at AP 1010 can determine a relativechange in size of the transceiver and use the change in size to helpdetermine a change in the length of the RF channel. This can be used asan input to beam steering, but could also be used to change othertransmission parameters associated with the channel.

Visual information may have other uses in wireless networks beyond thosementioned explicitly above. For example, visual information may be usedto detect faulty equipment, and/or aid in network troubleshooting.Visual information may also be used to predict channel parametersbetween a transmit point and a receive point, which could then be usedto assign a scheduling or transmission parameter. For instance, thevisual information could be used to predict a device orientation ormechanical beamsteering orientation of a transmit point and/or a receivepoint.

FIG. 11 illustrates a block diagram of an embodiment processing system1100 for performing methods described herein, which may be installed ina host device. As shown, the processing system 1100 includes a processor1104, a memory 1106, and interfaces 1110-1114, which may (or may not) bearranged as shown in FIG. 11. The processor 1104 may be any component orcollection of components adapted to perform computations and/or otherprocessing related tasks, and the memory 1106 may be any component orcollection of components adapted to store programming and/orinstructions for execution by the processor 1104. In an embodiment, thememory 1106 includes a non-transitory computer readable medium. Theinterfaces 1110, 1112, 1114 may be any component or collection ofcomponents that allow the processing system 1100 to communicate withother devices/components and/or a user. For example, one or more of theinterfaces 1110, 1112, 1114 may be adapted to communicate data, control,or management messages from the processor 1104 to applications installedon the host device and/or a remote device. As another example, one ormore of the interfaces 1110, 1112, 1114 may be adapted to allow a useror user device (e.g., personal computer (PC), etc.) tointeract/communicate with the processing system 1100. The processingsystem 1100 may include additional components not depicted in FIG. 11,such as long term storage (e.g., non-volatile memory, etc.).

In some embodiments, the processing system 1100 is included in a networkdevice that is accessing, or part otherwise of, a telecommunicationsnetwork. In one example, the processing system 1100 is in a network-sidedevice in a wireless or wireline telecommunications network, such as abase station, a relay station, a scheduler, a controller, a gateway, arouter, an applications server, or any other device in thetelecommunications network. In other embodiments, the processing system1100 is in a user-side device accessing a wireless or wirelinetelecommunications network, such as a mobile station, a user equipment(UE), a personal computer (PC), a tablet, a wearable communicationsdevice (e.g., a smartwatch, etc.), or any other device adapted to accessa telecommunications network.

In some embodiments, one or more of the interfaces 1110, 1112, 1114connects the processing system 1100 to a transceiver adapted to transmitand receive signaling over the telecommunications network. FIG. 12illustrates a block diagram of a transceiver 1200 adapted to transmitand receive signaling over a telecommunications network. The transceiver1200 may be installed in a host device. As shown, the transceiver 1200comprises a network-side interface 1202, a coupler 1204, a transmitter1206, a receiver 1208, a signal processor 1210, and a device-sideinterface 1212. The network-side interface 1202 may include anycomponent or collection of components adapted to transmit or receivesignaling over a wireless or wireline telecommunications network. Thecoupler 1204 may include any component or collection of componentsadapted to facilitate bi-directional communication over the network-sideinterface 1202. The transmitter 1206 may include any component orcollection of components (e.g., up-converter, power amplifier, etc.)adapted to convert a baseband signal into a modulated carrier signalsuitable for transmission over the network-side interface 1202. Thereceiver 1208 may include any component or collection of components(e.g., down-converter, low noise amplifier, etc.) adapted to convert acarrier signal received over the network-side interface 1202 into abaseband signal. The signal processor 1210 may include any component orcollection of components adapted to convert a baseband signal into adata signal suitable for communication over the device-side interface(s)1212, or vice-versa. The device-side interface(s) 1212 may include anycomponent or collection of components adapted to communicatedata-signals between the signal processor 1210 and components within thehost device (e.g., the processing system 1100, local area network (LAN)ports, etc.).

The transceiver 1200 may transmit and receive signaling over any type ofcommunications medium. In some embodiments, the transceiver 1200transmits and receives signaling over a wireless medium. For example,the transceiver 1200 may be a wireless transceiver adapted tocommunicate in accordance with a wireless telecommunications protocol,such as a cellular protocol (e.g., long-term evolution (LTE), etc.), awireless local area network (WLAN) protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi, etc.), or anyother type of wireless protocol (e.g., Bluetooth, near fieldcommunication (NFC), etc.). In such embodiments, the network-sideinterface 1202 comprises one or more antenna/radiating elements. Forexample, the network-side interface 1202 may include a single antenna,multiple separate antennas, or a multi-antenna array configured formulti-layer communication, e.g., single input multiple output (SIMO),multiple input single output (MISO), multiple input multiple output(MIMO), etc. In other embodiments, the transceiver 1200 transmits andreceives signaling over a wireline medium, e.g., twisted-pair cable,coaxial cable, optical fiber, etc. Specific processing systems and/ortransceivers may utilize all of the components shown, or only a subsetof the components, and levels of integration may vary from device todevice.

Although the description has been described in detail, it should beunderstood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can bemade without departing from the spirit and scope of this disclosure asdefined by the appended claims. Moreover, the scope of the disclosure isnot intended to be limited to the particular embodiments describedherein, as one of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate fromthis disclosure that processes, machines, manufacture, compositions ofmatter, means, methods, or steps, presently existing or later to bedeveloped, may perform substantially the same function or achievesubstantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments describedherein. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to include withintheir scope such processes, machines, manufacture, compositions ofmatter, means, methods, or steps.

What is claimed:
 1. A method for camera aided wireless networkmanagement, the method comprising: receiving visual information from oneor more camera sensors monitoring coverage areas of a wireless network;predicting a direction of departure (DoD) or an angle of departure (AoD)between a receive point and a transmit point in accordance with thevisual information provided by the one or more camera sensors; andassigning a scheduling or transmission parameter for a wireless signaltransmitted from the transmit point to the receive point in accordancewith the predicted DoD or the predicted AoD.
 2. The method of claim 1,further comprising: visually discovering a user equipment (UE) in acoverage area of an access point (AP) in accordance with the visualinformation provided by the one or more camera sensors, the receivepoint and the transmit point corresponding to the UE and the AP, or viceversa; and initiating link discovery between the AP and the UE when thevisual information provided by the one or more camera sensors satisfy alink discovery criterion.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the linkdiscovery criterion is satisfied when the visual information provided bythe one or more camera sensors indicates an unobstructed line-of-sightbetween the AP and the UE.
 4. The method of claim 2, wherein the linkdiscovery criterion is satisfied when a predicted link quality betweenthe AP and the UE, as estimated from the visual information, exceeds athreshold.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the predicted link qualitycorresponds to an indirect link between the AP and the UE.
 6. The methodof claim 2, wherein visually discovering the UE in the coverage area ofthe AP comprises: identifying a light emitting diode (LED) signatureemitted by the UE.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the LED signatureis emitted at a frequency that is outside the visible spectrum observedby humans.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the frequency of the LEDsignature is between 430 terahertz (THz) and 790 terahertz (THz).
 9. Themethod of claim 2, wherein assigning the scheduling or transmissionparameter for the wireless signal transmitted from the transmit point tothe receive point in accordance with the predicted DoD or the predictedAoD comprises: assigning a precoder to a discovery signal transmissionof the UE or the AP in accordance with the predicted DoD or thepredicted AoD.
 10. A method for camera aided wireless networkmanagement, the method comprising: receiving visual information from oneor more camera sensors monitoring coverage areas of a wireless network;and assigning a scheduling or transmission parameter for a transmissionbetween a transmit point and a receive point in accordance with thevisual information provided by the one or more camera sensors, whereinassigning the scheduling or transmission parameter for the transmissionbetween the transmit point and the receive point in accordance with thevisual information provided by the one or more camera sensors comprisespredicting a link obstruction over a radio interface between thetransmit point and the receive point in accordance with the visualinformation provided by the one or more camera sensors, and modifyingthe scheduling or transmission parameter of the radio interface for atime period, during which the link obstruction is predicted to occur, tomitigate or avoid a reduction in link quality resulting from the linkobstruction.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein modifying thescheduling or transmission parameter of the radio interface for the timeperiod to mitigate or avoid a reduction in link quality resulting fromthe link obstruction comprises: increasing a transmit power level orlowering a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) level of a transmissioncommunicated over the radio interface during the time period tocompensate for increased path loss resulting from the link obstruction.12. The method of claim 10, wherein modifying the scheduling ortransmission parameter of the radio interface for the time period tomitigate or avoid a reduction in link quality resulting from the linkobstruction comprises: modifying an antenna transmission scheme of atransmission communicated over the radio interface during the timeperiod.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein modifying the antennatransmission scheme of the transmission communicated over the radiointerface for the time period comprises: assigning a new precoder to thetransmit point during the time period to modify a signal path of theradio interface during the time period.
 14. The method of claim 10,wherein the transmit point comprises a serving access point (AP) and thereceive point comprises a served user equipment (UE), or vice versa, andwherein modifying the scheduling or transmission parameter for the timeperiod comprises: initiating a handover from the serving AP to aneighboring AP prior to the time period.
 15. The method of claim 10,wherein the transmit point comprises a serving access point (AP) and thereceive point comprises a served user equipment (UE), or vice versa, andwherein modifying the scheduling or transmission parameter during thetime period comprises: scheduling a joint transmission or a jointreception between the serving AP and a neighboring AP for datacommunicated by the UE during the time period.
 16. The method of claim10, wherein predicting the link obstruction over the radio interfacebetween the transmit point and the receive point in accordance with thevisual information provided by the one or more camera sensors comprises:tracking a position of a moving object; and predicting that the movingobject will pass through a signal path between the transmit point andthe receive point.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the signal pathcomprises a line of sight between the transmit point and the receivepoint.
 18. The method of claim 16, wherein the signal path comprises anindirect signal path reflecting off a reflection point between thetransmit point and the receive point.
 19. The method of claim 10,wherein the transmit point comprises a serving access point (AP) and thereceive point comprises a served user equipment (UE), or vice versa, andwherein predicting the link obstruction over the radio interface betweenthe transmit point and the receive point in accordance with the visualinformation provided by the one or more camera sensors comprises:tracking a position of the served UE as the served UE migratesthroughout a coverage area of the serving AP; and predicting that theserved UE will migrate to a position such that an object will passthrough a signal path between the served UE and the serving AP.
 20. Themethod of claim 19, wherein the object is a stationary structure. 21.The method of claim 10, wherein predicting the link obstruction over theradio interface between the transmit point and the receive point inaccordance with the visual information provided by the one or morecamera sensors comprises: identifying a weather condition; andpredicting that the weather condition will increase a path loss over theradio interface.
 22. The method of claim 21, wherein the weathercondition comprises precipitation.
 23. The method of claim 21, whereinmodifying the scheduling or transmission parameter for the time periodto mitigate or avoid the reduction in link quality comprises: changingfrom a multi-polarization transmission scheme to a single-polarizationtransmission scheme.
 24. A method for camera aided wireless networkmanagement, the method comprising: receiving visual information from oneor more camera sensors monitoring coverage areas of a wireless network;and assigning a scheduling or transmission parameter for a transmissionbetween a transmit point and a receive point in accordance with thevisual information provided by the one or more camera sensors, whereinassigning the scheduling or transmission parameter for the transmissionbetween the transmit point and the receive point in accordance with thevisual information provided by the one or more camera sensors comprisespredicting a mechanical beamsteering orientation of the transmit pointor the receive point, and assigning the scheduling or transmissionparameter in accordance with the predicted mechanical beamsteeringorientation.
 25. A network device comprising: a processor; and acomputer readable storage medium storing programming for execution bythe processor, the programming including instructions to: receive visualinformation from one or more camera sensors monitoring coverage areas ofa wireless network; predict a direction of departure (DoD) or an angleof departure (AoD) between a receive point and a transmit point inaccordance with the visual information provided by the one or morecamera sensors; and assign a scheduling or transmission parameter for awireless signal transmitted from the transmit point to the receive pointin accordance with the predicted DoD or the predicted AoD.
 26. A methodfor camera aided wireless network management, the method comprising:receiving visual information from one or more camera sensors monitoringcoverage areas of a wireless network; and predicting traffic densityusing the visual information provided by the one or more camera sensors,wherein predicting traffic density using the visual information providedby the one or more camera sensors comprises predicting an increasedtraffic density in a first coverage area upon determining that aplurality of UEs are migrating towards the first coverage area based onthe visual information provided by the one or more camera sensors.
 27. Anetwork device comprising: a processor; and a computer readable storagemedium storing programming for execution by the processor, theprogramming including instructions to: receive visual information fromone or more camera sensors monitoring coverage areas of a wirelessnetwork; and predict traffic density using the visual informationprovided by the one or more camera sensors, wherein the instructions topredict traffic density using the visual information provided by the oneor more camera sensors include instructions to predict an increasedtraffic density in a first coverage area upon determining that aplurality of UEs are migrating towards the first coverage area based onthe visual information provided by the one or more camera sensors.
 28. Amethod for camera aided management of backhaul links, the methodcomprising: receiving visual information from one or more camera sensorsmonitoring a microwave backhaul link between a first network-sidecomponent and a second network-side component; identifying a movement ofthe second network-side component using the visual information, whereinlocations of the one or more camera sensors do not change when thesecond network-side component moves; and modifying a transmission angleof a signal communicated over the microwave backhaul link to compensatefor the movement of the second network-side component.
 29. The method ofclaim 28, wherein the first network-side component is an access pointand the second network-side component is a transceiver mounted to a celltower, and wherein the movement of the second network-side componentcorresponds to a swaying of the cell tower.
 30. The method of claim 28,wherein modifying a transmission angle of the signal communicated overthe microwave backhaul link comprises performing electronic ormechanical beamsteering on a microwave transceiver of the firstnetwork-side component or the second network-side component.
 31. Themethod of claim 28, wherein the one or more camera sensors are notco-located with either of the first network-side component or the secondnetwork-side component.